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MDT files with Inventor 2013 - Autodesk's official statement how to proceed?

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Message 1 of 50
sam_m
4953 Views, 49 Replies

MDT files with Inventor 2013 - Autodesk's official statement how to proceed?

I've seen a couple comments on here (and the MDT section) plus Sean Dotson's site regarding MDT (and its files) and Inventor 2013 - due to concerns can we get an official statement from Autodesk how we are meant to manage our old data.

 

From my understanding Inventor 2013 has removed the MDT import optionm, presumably due to the end of MDT's support life - but surely the termination of MDT's support shouldn't terminate Inventor's support of those files?!?

 

To give you some understanding of my concern and reason for questioning - we have been manufacturing products for the last 60odd years, obviously before CAD and MDT, and we have those hand-drawn sketches for ref as/when needed - in the same way we still have our MDT data from the many years we used it prior to Inventor. Once in a blue moon we need to view this old data as components change (or become obsolete) and assess the need to update the product/assembly - if there are any changes then we import into Inventor and work with the data there. Almost as a rolling update as/when needed - and we have been working this way since about Inventor 6, but we still have a LOT of old MDT data that hasn't been converted which we may (or may not) need to access in years to come. Only this year I had some work evaluating updating an old product we've sold since 1998, so I had to go through the history of the product and can you guess what software that data was in?

 

How do Autodesk expect us (and the multitude of similar companies) to be able to access and assess our legacy data in the way we have up until now?

 

Yes, I know we have known for years that MDT was stopping with 2009 and its support would cease 3 years after, but I honestly believe support for MDT does not equal support for MDT files within Inventor.  Inventor is the valid/present software and has had the feature to access MDT data for years - therefore it is part of Inventor's support.  I am fully aware it has required the use of MDT to import data into Inventor but why hasn't there been the incorporation of MDT import into the core Inventor sofware with the termination of MDT support (even if it means a dumbed-down dumb-solids import instead of the full feature-history)? 

 

As far as I understand we are unable to even authorize our MDT2009 software if we needed to re-build a pc tomorrow - is that the case, even if we have had an ongoing subscription from the days of MDT?

 

I am greatful for any official statement/information from Autodesk regarding this. 



Sam M.
Inventor and Showcase monkey

Please mark this response as "Accept as Solution" if it answers your question...
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49 REPLIES 49
Message 41 of 50
ihiengdept
in reply to: TravisNave

Hi Travis,
I'm afraid that Sam's interpretation is more accurate.  The preceeding statement implies that ALL items in the list will be implemented.  Also since each point is bulleted and a complete thought in it's own right, bullet 1 can not influence any of the other bullet points unless it does so explicitly.  Additionally, bullet one is qualified by the term "support" which actually limits the scope of that bullet point.
For a definition of support, you would have to look at the "Subscription Terms and definitions" document.  Support is defined at the beginning of the document and throughout section 2.2.    There's not a good Single sentence definition that I found, but the type of support being referred to is the type of support you would get if you needed to call Autodesk for assistance with an installation.  "Support" in this context is entirely separate from software availablitlity and licensing which arre delt with very clearly in the other points.
------------
...  To protect this data, Autodesk is taking the following actions:  

 

  • In accordance with section 2.2.3 of the Subscription Terms and Conditions, Autodesk Support will continue to provide product support for Subscription customers for a period of no less than three years after the removal of Mechanical Desktop from the Inventor product line.
  •  Autodesk will continue to make Mechanical Desktop 2009 available for download with future releases of Inventor.
  •  Autodesk will continue to support the DWG Import wizard for Mechanical Desktop parts, assemblies and drawings.
  • Despite anything to the contrary in our Subscription terms and conditions or our license agreement(s), Autodesk will allow customers the right to continue using earlier versions of Mechanical Desktop with Inventor releases.

----------------

 

Message 42 of 50
TravisNave
in reply to: ihiengdept

If Sam's *interpretation* was more accurate then this would not be an issue. Generally speaking, when it comes to legal speak, the items predicating a statement of time are dependent upon the statement preceding it. Thus the way Subscription works and has worked is that the support would continue for three versions back. The fact that 2009 is four versions back means that the bullet items no longer apply. I'm afraid that you're trying to ascertain a conclusion that better meets your needs rather than the reality of the statement. Unfortunately, MDT support has been laid to rest. However, as the statement suggests, there is nothing that would keep you from using the software beyond the scope of the Subscription. Therefore, you are apparently allowed to continue to use MDT 2009 with the 2012 release indefinitely. So I suppose there is a silver lining. The only drawback is that a Subscription network license would not carry the support for 2009. Those users would have to stay on 2012 until they have completely migrated. Thus, in theory, they could maintain thru 2015 Subscription when 2012 would then run out at the 2016 release. At that point, they would no longer receive license or activation support for 2012.


Travis Nave Send TravisNave a Private Message                                             Need help in your post? Mention me with @TravisNave



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Message 43 of 50
navbor
in reply to: sam_m

Here's another angle.... I have 2 seats of Autodesk Inventor 2013. I have never owned (or even worked in) MDT. Therefore I clearly don't or never did have a MDT license or subscription. 

 

What I do have is,... a lot of customers that have legacy MDT data that now needs to be incorporated into upgrades / new designs.

 

The customers are either unable, or unwilling to provide anything other than MDT files (after all why should they, especially if the original design process was done by a subcontractor and that subcontractor no longer exists).

 

The customer's stance from this point of view is that "if you want the work, this is the data we have, so find a way to use it!"

 

Although that statement was never made, the point is clear, there is a lot of legacy MDT data out there that needs to be either referenced or changed for new  projects.

 

Surely there must be a way of bringing this information into Inventor 2013 (In my case I don't need the parametric data, just a dumb solid will do), but this is not possible as far as I can see.

 

Surely Autodesk must have some form of (at least moral) obligation to provide for this. Just my opinion and maybe I have missed the boat and there is a way to get the data into inventor, but I have not found it yet.

 

By the way, I did try the MDT 2009 download and install when I was still on AI 2012, but the installation process corrupted the entire inventor installation and I needed (essentially) to reformat the entire machine again and start fresh (needless to say I never tried the 2009 MDT installation again).

Regards
Rob
-------------------------------------------
Windows 7 Pro (X64)
Intel(R) core (TM) i5-4690 CPU @ 3.50GHz
32.0 GB RAM
Nvidia Quadro K2000
Autodesk Inventor 2015 Professional Ultimate Design Suite
Message 44 of 50

Autodesk generated a network licence file for Product Design Suite Ultimate 2013 that included MDT2009.  You have to request it though.

Message 45 of 50
navbor
in reply to: ihiengdept

What is the process to make this request (i.e. to whom, or more specifically what e-mail address must this request be made)?

 

My seats running AI are all windows machines, but the server is a linux box. If this license is a network license, does the fact that I have a linux box affect this option?

 

Thanks

Rob

Regards
Rob
-------------------------------------------
Windows 7 Pro (X64)
Intel(R) core (TM) i5-4690 CPU @ 3.50GHz
32.0 GB RAM
Nvidia Quadro K2000
Autodesk Inventor 2015 Professional Ultimate Design Suite
Message 46 of 50
weaton
in reply to: navbor

I got online and logged into their site and went to the Activation & Registration site and selected the Chat option and chatted with a rep who took my Product Design Suite Premium 2013 S/N info and generated me a license file with the MDT2009 info and emailed it to me!  All is well!

Message 47 of 50
sam_m
in reply to: weaton

Out of a hope to try and raise awareness of a need for long-term MDT data accessability I created an idea wish request:

http://forums.autodesk.com/t5/Inventor-IdeaStation/Incorporate-MDT-import-within-Inventor/idi-p/3757...

 

add support and hopefully something might happen - not going to hold my breath or anything tho.



Sam M.
Inventor and Showcase monkey

Please mark this response as "Accept as Solution" if it answers your question...
If you have found any post to be helpful, even if it's not a direct solution, then please provide that author kudos - spread that love 😄

Message 48 of 50
jpblower
in reply to: sam_m

I've just run into this issue.  Haven't touched MDT in years but that doesn't mean we don't have archived files.  Each surface from MDT comes in as an ACAD_PROXY_ENTITY.  We've saved several files in dwg assuming that there'd be the ability to open them later.  Now, no dice.  I can certainly understand not supporting MDT but what about all of those people who switched but have archived files they may have to use once a decade? 

Message 49 of 50
Curtis_Waguespack
in reply to: navbor


@rvangend wrote:

What is the process to make this request (i.e. to whom, or more specifically what e-mail address must this request be made)? 

 


See this link for information on how to get a copy of MDT 2009 to use for translation:

http://inventortrenches.blogspot.com/2011/05/where-to-download-mechanical-desktop.html

 

I hope this helps.
Best of luck to you in all of your Inventor pursuits,
Curtis
http://inventortrenches.blogspot.com

Message 50 of 50
A_James_A
in reply to: TravisNave

Everybody has a valid point.

 

My problem is that smaller manufacturing (not design) companies don't rush to buy latest and greatest software as soon as it's on the market. On top of that, we have to work realy hard to justify purchase of new software. By the time we have convinced somebody signing the check to do this, we are three versions behind. So, it's not that people are ignorant of instructions to translate drawings early, it's just that we never had means to do so. That's why we need some kind of translator add-on for Inventor 2013 and up.

 

Anybody else with same problem?

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